Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Dawn to cruise from Dubai twice in 2021

Norwegian Cruise Line continues to ramp up its Middle East cruise presence with three of its cruise ships sailing from Dubai in the coming two years, including Norwegian Dawn, which will cruise from Dubai twice in 2021.

Norwegian Dawn will join Norwegian Spirit and Norwegian Jade in cruising from the Arabian Gulf in the coming two years. Spirit will do so in 2020, while Jade will cruise from Dubai in 2019.

RELATED: Norwegian Sky emerges from refit aimed at making her more Breakaway-like

RELATED: Video: Dozens injured as Norwegian Escape hit by Cat 3 cyclone-force winds

Like Norwegian Spirit, Norwegian Dawn will cruise from Dubai to Cape Town, but will then do the same cruise itinerary in reverse (Cape Town to Dubai), before cruising from Dubai a second time for Civitavecchia (Rome).

The Dubai to Cape Town cruise will depart February 8th, 2021. The 21-night ‘African Safari and Seychelles’ voyage will first visit Abu Dhabi (where the ship will stay overnight), before heading out to sea from the Arabian Gulf.

The Abu Dhabi to Mahe, Seychelles leg of the voyage will be the longest, with a stretch of five nights and four full days at sea before making port in Port Victoria. Norwegian Dawn will stay overnight here before heading for Nosy Be, Madagascar.

Next up will be Port Louis, Mauritius and Saint-Denis, Reunion before another two days and three nights at sea bound for Richard’s Bay, South Africa.

Norwegian Dawn will stay overnight in Richard’s Bay, giving passengers more time to explore the interior

RELATED: Norwegian Epic destroys dock after engine failure in strong winds

RELATED: 5 ways Norwegian Bliss is different within the Breakaway Plus class

Norwegian Dawn will stay overnight here, and will also visit Port Elizabeth and Mossel Bay, before arriving in Cape Town, where she’ll stay overnight on the final evening of the cruise.

Norwegian Dawn will do a turnaround in South Africa’s Mother City and then set off back for Dubai on March 1st, 2021, following almost exactly the same route in reverse (except that Nosy Be is substituted with Muscat in Oman instead).

Also, on this return itinerary, Norwegian Dawn will only stay overnight in Mahe, Seychelles and in Dubai on the final night of the cruise.

On March 21st, 2021, Norwegian Dawn will make her second Dubai cruise departure, a 22-night Wonders of the Mediterranean and Arabia voyage that visits 12 ports on her way to Rome.

On the itinerary are Abu Dhabi, Aqaba, Safaga, a transit of the Suez Canal, and visits to Ashdod and Haifa in Israel, as well as Limassol, Rhodes, Kusadasi, Piraeus (Athens) and Naples before arriving in Civitavecchia (Rome).

For passengers that don’t like long stretches of days at sea, be forewarned that this itinerary doesn’t feature any port calls between Abu Dhabi and Aqaba in Jordan (a full week at sea). But, the ship will stay overnight in Abu Dhabi, giving you lots of time on land to enjoy prior to the voyage.

On this cruise, Norwegian Dawn will also stay overnight in Safaga, Egypt, in addition to Abu Dhabi.

Shaun Ebelthite

Founder and editor of Cruise Arabia & Africa. I try to create the best news and information specifically for cruise passengers taking cruises to and from Dubai (where I live) and South Africa (where I was born). You can contact me at shaun(at)cruisearabiaonline.com.

Recent Posts

Pacific World opens Cape Town’s 2026/27 cruise season with 1,397 passengers

Pacific World has become the first cruise ship of Cape Town’s 2026/27 season, arriving with…

2 weeks ago

Qatar targets new cruise opportunities after talks with international operators

Qatar Tourism and Old Doha Port held talks with five cruise operators at Seatrade Cruise…

2 weeks ago

MSC Cruises sends Musica for 45-day refit to add Yacht Club and new restaurants

MSC Musica has entered the Palumbo Malta Shipyard for a 45-day refurbishment that will add…

2 weeks ago

Travelmarvel returns to Egypt as Sirius begins maiden Nile season

Travelmarvel has returned to Egypt with the maiden voyage of its new Nile river ship,…

2 weeks ago

Durban family seeks answers after crew member dies aboard MSC Euribia

The family of a South African crew member who died aboard MSC Euribia is seeking…

2 weeks ago

Holland America unveils new Beach Club and dining venue at Half Moon Cay

Holland America Line has completed a series of upgrades at RelaxAway, Half Moon Cay, including…

2 weeks ago